Painting Dublin, 1886–1949: Visualising a changing city

By Kathryn Milligan

Delving into a hitherto unexplored aspect of Irish art history, Painting Dublin, 1886–1949 examines the depiction of Dublin by artists from the late-nineteenth to the mid-twentieth century. Artists’ representations of the city have long been markers of civic pride and identity, yet in Ireland such artworks have been overlooked in favour of the rural and pastoral. Framed by the shift from city of empire to capital of an independent republic, this book examines artworks by Walter Osborne, Rose Barton, Jack B. Yeats, Harry Kernoff, Estella Solomons and Flora Mitchell, encompassing a variety of urban views and artistic themes. While Dublin is already renowned for its representation in literature, this book will demonstrate the many attractions it held for Ireland’s artists, offering a vivid visualisation of the city’s streets and inhabitants at a crucial time in its history.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Release date: Dec 6, 2020
• ISBN: 9781526144126

Book preview

Painting Dublin, 1886–1949

Painting Dublin, 1886–1949

Visualising a changing city

Kathryn Milligan

Manchester University Press

Copyright © Kathryn Milligan 2020

The right of Kathryn Milligan to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Published by Manchester University Press

Altrincham Street, Manchester M1 7JA

www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN 978 1 5261 4410 2 hardback

First published 2020

The publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for any external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Image credit: James Mahony, Dublin From the Spire of St George’s Church, Hardwicke Place, c. 1853 (National Gallery of Ireland). Cover design: Daniel Benneworth-Gray.

Typeset in 10/12 Apolline Std by

Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Stockport, Cheshire

Contents

List of plates

List of figures

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

Introduction: from Empire to Republic, 1886–1949

1Poverty, parks, and painting

2Fog, gas, and the picturesque

3Dockers, swimmers, and dancers

4Radicals, workers, and drinkers

5Glamorous, old, and vanishing Dublin

Conclusion

Select bibliography

Index

Plates

0.1 James Mahony, Dublin from the Spire of Saint George’s Church, Hardwicke Place , 1854, ink and watercolour on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

0.2 Michael Angelo Hayes, Sackville Street, Dublin , c.1853, watercolour, gouache and graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

0.3 Richard Thomas Moynan, The Death of the Queen , c.1901, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

0.4 Edmond Delrenne, Sackville Street in Ruins , 1916, charcoal and watercolour with highlights on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

0.5 Kathleen Fox, The Ruins of the Four Courts , 1922, oil on canvas, private collection. © Estate of Kathleen Fox, IVARO, Dublin, 2019. Photo courtesy of Adam’s, Dublin.

1.1 Walter Frederick Osborne, A Boy Blowing Bubbles , undated, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.2 Walter Frederick Osborne, Interior, St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin , undated, oil on canvas. Collection and image courtesy of Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin (Reg. No. 1341).

1.3 Walter Frederick Osborne, Saint Patrick’s Close, Dublin , 1887, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.4 Walter Frederick Osborne, Rags, Bones and Bottles , 1891, oil on canvas, private collection. Courtesy of Morgan O’Driscoll Auctioneers and Phil Pound Photography.

1.5 Life in the Streets: Hard Times , 1892, Walter Frederick Osborne (1857–1903). Presented by the Trustees of the Chantrey Bequest, 1892. Photo © Tate.

1.6 Walter Frederick Osborne, The Fish Market, Patrick Street , 1893, oil on canvas, 59.7 × 80 cm (unframed). Collection and image courtesy of Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin (Reg. No. 23).

1.7 Walter Frederick Osborne, Dublin Streets: A Vendor of Books , 1889, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.8 Walter Frederick Osborne, In a Dublin Park, Light and Shade , c.1895, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.9 Walter Frederick Osborne, The Four Courts, Dublin , c. 1901, oil on board, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

2.1 Rose Barton, Relieving the Castle Guard , 1891, watercolour on paper. Photograph by Davison & Associates, courtesy of the Office of Public Works.

2.2 Michael Angelo Hayes, St Patrick’s Day, Military Parade at Dublin Castle , 1844, watercolour on paper. Photograph by Dennis Mortell, courtesy of the Office of Public Works.

2.3 Rose Barton, Going to the Levée at Dublin Castle , 1897, watercolour on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

2.4 Rose Barton, Waterloo Bridge, London , 1893, watercolour on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London.

2.5 Rose Barton, South Kensington Station , 1894, watercolour on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London.

2.6 Rose Barton, The Rotunda Rooms , 1900, watercolour on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London.

3.1 Jack Butler Yeats, Rum Old Hairdressers near the Academy , 1900, watercolour, ink and graphite on paper. Yeats Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.2 Jack Butler Yeats, King Billy , 1901, watercolour and ink on paper. Henry W. and Albert A. Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The New York Public Library. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.3 Jack Butler Yeats, The DBC Café , 1901, watercolour and ink on paper. Henry W. and Albert A. Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The New York Public Library. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.4 Jack Butler Yeats, The Barcore , 1908, watercolour, ink and graphite on paper. Yeats Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.5 Jack Butler Yeats, A Westerly Wind , 1921, oil on canvas. On private loan to the Collections of Trinity College Dublin. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.6 Jack Butler Yeats, Bachelor’s Walk, In Memory , 1915, oil on canvas, private collection. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.7 Jack Butler Yeats, In Capel Street, Dublin , 1923, oil on board, Crawford Art Gallery Cork, Gibson Bequest Fund Purchase. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.8 Jack Butler Yeats, The Liffey Swim , 1923, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

3.9 Jack Butler Yeats , Crossing the Metal Bridge , 1926, oil on panel. Image courtesy of the Oriel Gallery. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.10 Jack Butler Yeats, In the Tram , 1923, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.11 Jack Butler Yeats, A Dublin Newsboy Boarding a Tram , 1926, oil on canvas. Harvard Art Museums/Fogg Museum, Gift of Benjamin and Lilian Hertzberg. Photo: © President and Fellows of Harvard College. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.12 Jack Butler Yeats, Flower Girl, Dublin , 1926, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.13 Jack Butler Yeats, Three Traders of Dublin , 1927, oil on canvas, private collection. Image courtesy of Adam’s. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.14 Jack Butler Yeats, Jazz Babies , 1927, oil on canvas, private collection. Image courtesy of Adam’s, Dublin. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.15 Jack Butler Yeats, Dancing on the Deck of the Royal Iris , 1932, oil on slate board, private collection. Image courtesy of Adam’s, Dublin. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.16 Jack Butler Yeats, People in a Street , 1936, oil on canvas, private collection. Photography: © Denis Mortell Photography 2019. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.17 Jack Butler Yeats, Morning in a City , c.1937, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

4.1 Harry Kernoff, Death , c.1934, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.2 Harry Kernoff, Dublin Dockyard , undated, oil on board, private collection. Image courtesy of Adam’s, Dublin. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.3 Harry Kernoff, The Red Seat near Baggot Street Bridge , c.1947, oil on board, 67 × 97 cm (unframed). Collection and image courtesy of Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin (Reg. No. 1824). © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.4 Harry Kernoff, Summer’s Day at Leeson Bridge , 1936, oil on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.5 Harry Kernoff, Boats at Anchor – Grand Canal Quay , 1937, watercolour on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Adam’s, Dublin. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.6 Harry Kernoff, Winetavern Street , 1934, oil on panel, 37.8 × 58 cm (unframed). Collection and image courtesy of Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin (Reg. No. 784). © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.7 Harry Kernoff, Self-Portrait , 1929, oil on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s, London. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.8 Harry Kernoff, Davy Byrne’s Pub, Dublin, from the Bailey , 1941, oil on board, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

Figures

0.1 Larry Burrows, People Celebrating the Independence of Ireland, 1949 . Getty Images.

0.2 Map of the city of Dublin and its environs, constructed for Thom’s Almanac and Official Directory , held by UCD School of Geography, Planning & Environmental Policy. © Public domain. Digital content: © University College Dublin, published by UCD Library, University College Dublin.

0.3 Central Council for the Organization of Recruiting in Ireland, Come into the Ranks and Fight, Don’t Stand in the Crowd and Stare! Early Printed Books, Trinity College Library. Reproduced courtesy of The Board of Trinity College Dublin.

0.4 T. J. Westropp, Royal Hibernian Academy, Wynne’s Hotel and Abbey Street , 17 May 1916. By permission of the Royal Irish Academy © RIA.

1.1 Robert French, Rathmines Road , c.1865–1914, glass plate negative, The Lawrence Photograph Collection. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

1.2 Anonymous, Photograph of Walter Osborne seated in his studio, c.1880s. The Walter Osborne Archive Collection, ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

1.3 John Butler Yeats, The Bird Market , 1886, oil on canvas, 63.5 × 48.3cm (unframed). Collection and image courtesy of Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin (Reg. No. 237).

1.4 Philip H. Miller, Flitters, Tatters and the Counsellor , 1890, etching. © The Trustees of the British Museum.

1.5 Anonymous, Three Photographs of Patrick Street looking towards St Patrick’s Cathedral, c.1886. The Walter Osborne Archive Collection, ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

1.6 BELUM.U1570. St Patrick’s Close, Dublin (1881, Barton, Rose 1856–1929). © National Museums NI, Collection Ulster Museum.

1.7 Robert French, Patrick Street , c.1880–1900, glass negative plate, The Lawrence Photograph Collection. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

1.8 Walter Frederick Osborne, Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin from Patrick Street , c.1892, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.9 Walter Frederick Osborne, preparatory sketches for Life in the Streets: Hard Times , 1892, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.10 Walter Frederick Osborne, preparatory sketches for Life in the Streets: Hard Times , 1892, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.11 Walter Frederick Osborne, A Dublin Fish Seller , graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.12 Walter Frederick Osborne, Men Sitting in Saint Stephen’s Green, Dublin , c.1895, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

1.13 Walter Frederick Osborne, The Old Four Courts , wood engraving on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

2.1 Rose Barton, The Bedford Tower, Upper Castle Yard, Dublin , graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland.

2.2 Robert French, The Castle, Dublin City , c.1865–1914, glass plate negative, The Lawrence Photograph Collection. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

2.3 Rose Barton, Going to the Levée up Cork Hill , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

2.4 Rose Barton, Patrick Street , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

2.5 Rose Barton, Weaver’s Hall , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

2.6 Rose Barton, Houses in Weaver’s Square , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

2.7 Rose Barton, Huguenot Houses, Dublin , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

2.8 Robert French, Weaver’s Square , c.1865–1914, glass plate negative, The Lawrence Photograph Collection. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

2.9 Robert French, Chamber Street , c.1865–1914, glass plate negative, The Lawrence Photograph Collection. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

2.10 Rose Barton, College Green , from F. Gerard, Picturesque Dublin: Old and New (London: Hutchinson and Co., 1898). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland.

3.1 Jack Butler Yeats, A Dublin Hoarding 1901, ink and watercolour on paper. Henry W. and Albert A. Berg Collection of English and American Literature, The New York Public Library. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.2 Jack Butler Yeats, The Tatooer’s Shop on the Quays of Dublin , from A Broadside , August 1913. Yeats Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

3.3 Jack Butler Yeats, The Dublin Quays , from A Broadside , October 1914. Yeats Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © Estate of Jack B. Yeats, DACS London / IVARO Dublin, 2019.

4.1 Photograph of Harry Kernoff, Harcourt Street Station , 1926, oil on canvas, Harry Kernoff Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.2 Harry Kernoff, A Dublin Tram , from Harry Kernoff, Woodcuts (The Talbot Press, 1942). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.3 Photograph of Harry Kernoff, Harcourt Street Corner , date and medium unknown, Harry Kernoff Archive, ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.4 Photograph of Harry Kernoff, Noah’s Ark , Harry Kernoff Archive, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.5 Photograph of Harry Kernoff, Vortex , date and medium unknown, Harry Kernoff Archive, ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.6 Photograph of Harry Kernoff, The Triumph of Death , date and medium unknown, Harry Kernoff Archive, ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.7 Harry Kernoff, Liberty Hall , 1928, ballpoint pen, ink and graphite on card, mounted on board, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.8 Harry Kernoff, Misery Hill , 1936, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.9 Harry Kernoff, Dublin Quay Side, Forbes Street , sketch for On the Dublin Quays – Johnny Forty Coats , 1935, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.10 Harry Kernoff, Unemployed , from Woodcuts (The Talbot Press, 1942). ESB Centre for the Study of Irish Art, National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.11 Harry Kernoff, The Guinness Brewery , from A Book of Dublin (Dublin Corporation, 1929). Collection of the Author. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.12 Harry Kernoff, The Jacobs Biscuit Factory , from A Book of Dublin (Dublin Corporation, 1929). Collection of the Author. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.13 Harry Kernoff, The Grain Silo of the Merchants Warehousing Company , from A Book of Dublin (Dublin Corporation, 1929). Collection of the Author. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.14 Harry Kernoff, Dublin Docks , 1931, charcoal and pencil on paper, private collection. Image courtesy of Adams. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.15 Harry Kernoff, Huband Bridge, Saint Stephen’s Church (Peppercanister), Mount Street, Dublin from 1 st Floor V. Murphy’s Flat , 1939, graphite on card, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.16 Harry Kernoff, Crane by the River Liffey, Dublin , 1935, oil on canvas, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.17 Harry Kernoff, Quay and Street , 1933, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.18 Harry Kernoff, The Boer War Memorial, Saint Stephen’s Green, Dublin , 1935, graphite on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

4.19 Harry Kernoff, Davy Byrne’s Pub, Dublin, from the Bailey , 1941, graphite and ink on paper, National Gallery of Ireland. Photo © National Gallery of Ireland. © The Estate of Harry Kernoff.

5.1 Estella Frances Solomons , Hoey’s Court , etching. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.2 Estella Frances Solomons, Dublin Alleyway ( Merchant Tailors’ Arch ), etching, Trinity College Dublin. The Board of Trinity College Dublin. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.3 Estella Frances Solomons, The King’s Inns , etching, Trinity College Dublin. The Board of Trinity College Dublin. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.4 Estella Frances Solomons, The Leinster Market , c.1915, etching, private collection. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.5 Myra K. Hughes, The Leinster Market , 1909, etching. Image courtesy of the National Library of Ireland.

5.6 Estella Frances Solomons, Carlisle Court , etching, private collection. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.7 Estella Frances Solomons, Winetavern Street , etching, private collection. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.8 Estella Frances Solomons, City Quay, Dublin (The Quay, South Wall) , etching, Trinity College Dublin. The Board of Trinity College Dublin. © The Trustees of the Estate of Estella Solomons.

5.9 James Abbott McNeill Whistler, Black Lion Wharf , 1859, etching, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of Susan Dwight Bliss, 1967. Public domain.

5.10 James Abbott McNeill Whistler, Free Trade Wharf , 1877, etching, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of Theodore De Witt, 1917. Public domain.

Note: As there is no known copyright holder for Flora H. Mitchell, her works cannot be reproduced in this volume. However, the original watercolours for her Vanishing Dublin publication are available to view on the National Gallery of Ireland’s website, and the relevant object numbers have been listed in the endnotes. The catalogue can be accessed at onlinecollection.nationalgallery.ie. It has not been possible to include reproductions of some private collection works, but many of these are available online through auction house records.

Acknowledgements

My first thanks go to those who have offered support, feedback, and mentorship at different stages of the research and writing of Painting Dublin: Yvonne Scott and Philip McEvansoneya, Department of History of Art and Architecture, Trinity College Dublin; Emily Mark Fitzgerald, UCD School of Art History and Cultural Policy; and Nicholas Allen, Willson Centre for the Humanities and Arts, University of Georgia.

An Irish Research Council Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Fellowship at the UCD School of Art History and Cultural Policy (2017–19) was crucial for bringing this book to completion. This fellowship enabled me to conduct further research abroad, travel to international conferences, and provided much needed funding to source images for publication. During this period, I was a Resident Scholar at the UCD Humanities Institute, and I offer sincere thanks to Anne Fuchs, Director of the HI, who ensures that the Institute is a sheltering and stimulating environment for early career researchers. The benefit of having a dedicated workspace, shared with other postdoctoral and postgraduate scholars cannot be underestimated, especially in these times of academic precarity. I am particularly grateful to the cohort of H105: Sarah Comyn, Stephan Ehrig, Sarah Galletly, Alison Garden, Scott Hamilton, Shonagh Hill, Britta Jung, Megan Kuster, Zosia Kuczyńska, Dan O’Brien, and Sarah Sharp. I would also like to thank Valerie Norton and Ricki Schoen, UCD Humanities Institute; Carla Briggs, Philip Cottrell, Kathleen James-Chakraborty, Conor Lucey, and Elizabeth Varley, UCD School of Art History and Cultural Policy, for making my time at UCD so fulfilling. I have frequently benefitted from the advice, knowledge, and support of Ewelina Bykuc, Marie Bourke, Nicola Figgis, Angela Griffith, Gearóid Hayes, Róisín Kennedy, Niamh McGuinne, Niamh McNally, Donal Maguire, Brendan Rooney, Ellen Rowley, and the committee members of the Dublin History Research Network.

I am grateful for the additional financial assistance offered by the National University of Ireland’s Publication Grant Scheme. Emma Brennan and Alun Richards at Manchester University Press have been a pleasure to work with; I would also like to thank the anonymous readers who gave insightful feedback on my proposal and manuscript.

The following people were instrumental in gathering together the images reproduced in this publication: Louise Morgan and Leah Benson, National Gallery of Ireland; Berni Metcalfe, James Harte, and Glenn Dunne, National Library of Ireland; Philip Roe, Dublin City Gallery the Hugh Lane; Anne Boddaert and Michael Waldron, Crawford Art Gallery; Johanne Mullen, Irish Museum of Modern Art; William Derham, OPW Dublin Castle; Antoinette Prout, Royal Irish Academy; Catherine Giltrap, Trinity College Art Collections; Phil Pound, Morgan O’Driscoll Fine Art Auctioneers and Valuers; James O’Halloran, Adams Auctioneers; Chris Sutherns, Tate; Órna Roche, UCD Digital Library; Sharon Sutton, Digital Resources and Imaging Service, Trinity College Dublin; Arabella Bishop and Beatrice Moller, Sotheby’s; Stephen at the Picture Library of the National Museums of Northern Ireland; Mark at the Oriel Gallery; and staff of the British Museum Images Service, Getty Images, Harvard Art Museums, and the New York Public Library. Thanks also to Chris Walsh of IVARO – Irish Visual Artists Rights Organisation, and the representatives of the estates of Estella Solomons and Harry Kernoff.

I am immensely grateful to those at the National Gallery of Ireland who have continually supported my research and enabled me to share aspects of it with the public: Sarah Conroy, Joanne Drum, and Sinéad Rice deserve special thanks, as well as the wonderful voices of the National Gallery of Ireland Workplace Choir who provide a much needed respite from writing on Tuesday evenings. I have been blessed with a wonderful group of friends who have, in turn, offered good advice, cups of coffee, and pairs of keen eyes over the course of this process. My sincere thanks go to Myles Campbell, Catherine Coughlan, William Derham, Sarah Maguire, Caroline McGee, Niamh Nic Ghabhann, Fariha Shaikh, Colleen Thomas, and especially to Lisa Towell.

My final thanks go to my family: my parents, Lou and Henry; Jennie, Donal, and beloved goddaughters Rachel and Eleanor; Rick, Kate, and darling nephews Edward and Charles. This book is dedicated to Grace Madigan, my favourite flâneuse and Dubliner: thank you for being endlessly cheering, patient, questioning, and supportive.

Abbreviations

Introduction: from Empire to Republic, 1886–1949

From the top of the steeple of St George’s Church, Hardwicke Place, the city of Dublin stretches out across the canvas in a maze of streets and houses (Plate 0.1). Black, skeletal watercolour ships trace their way to-and-fro across the bay and up the river, carrying goods and people into the heart of the conurbation, while hazy blue mountains lie on the horizon, connecting land, sea, and sky. On close examination, the mass of rooftops and chimneys separate out into recognisable forms: the viewer of this painting can identify some of the city’s eighteenth-century squares – Mountjoy, Parnell, and Merrion Square – the Rotunda Pleasure Gardens, the parkland of Trinity College and St Stephen’s Green, the broad sweep of Sackville Street, and the curve of College Green. Looking closer still, sculptural and architectural features emerge: Nelson’s Pillar rises beside the portico of the General Post Office on Sackville Street (renamed O’Connell Street in 1924); equestrian monuments of William III and George II are seen on Dame Street and in Stephen’s Green, along with the campanile in Trinity College and the Rutland Memorial Fountain on Merrion Square. In addition to landmark buildings like the Custom House and Rotunda Hospital, the glass dome of the exhibition hall, constructed for the Irish Industrial Exhibition in 1853, extends along Leinster Lawn.

With the geography of the city mapped out, the artist draws our eye to the people of the city. Sackville Street is filled with carriages and outside-cars, a troop of red-coated soldiers march in formation, while people stroll in the Rotunda Pleasure Gardens. Smaller and narrower streets reveal people at work and leisure, with social demarcations made visible through the character of the street and the activities taking place within its environs. In parts of the composition, the dense warren of streets merges into abstract areas of ink and watercolour with simple geometric shapes giving a mere suggestion of windows and rooftops; chimneys emit gentle eddies of grey smoke. Painted by James Mahony, Dublin from the Spire of St George’s Church, Hardwicke Place captures the geographical and physical life of nineteenth-century Dublin: a city of the British Empire, replete with symbolic markers of its place within this global network of trade and military power. This painting, however, is also a record of a city on the brink of change. Although the architectural spine of the city was completed in the eighteenth century, by the 1850s it was rapidly expanding; both commercially, with new retail and banking districts, and physically, with the development of suburbs to the north and south. The statue of William III, for example, was a repeated flashpoint for political tensions; in 1916 the GPO became the headquarters of the Easter Rising; and in 1922, Sackville Street was largely destroyed by the Irish Civil War, having only just been rebuilt after its destruction in the earlier conflict. The artistic representation of this changing and evolving city lies at the heart of this book, explored through the paintings and prints of six artists spanning the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. Through their artworks we can glimpse at the experience of living in Dublin through these often-turbulent years and witness how the depiction of urban life connected artists in Ireland to an international artistic community and tradition.

Dublin in Irish cultural history

‘To understand Dublin,’ Oliva Robertson wrote, ‘one must know its life in its fashionable squares and in its slums, in its suburbs and in its Georgian tenements; the life of its artists and students … the life of the old with their memories and the fresh hope that springs up with children; and the life that comes to us from airport and harbour.’¹ Writing in the 1950s, Robertson was taking stock of the changes that had been wrought in the city in the preceding decades, its characterisation in the writings of James Joyce and Seán O’Casey, and the challenges that still remained for Dublin to become a worthy capital of the young Irish Republic. Robertson’s memoir of mid-century Dublin contributed to the considerable body of writing on the city (both real or imagined), creating a vivid textual picture of life in its houses, streets, and squares. To date, however, little attention has been paid to the equally varied visual representations of the city created by artists in Ireland during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Seeking to redress this imbalance, this volume will explore the representation of Dublin in visual art (chiefly painting and print), with a specific focus on the lives and artworks of Walter Frederick Osborne (1859–1903), Rose Mary Barton (1856–1929), Jack Butler Yeats (1871–1957), Harry Aaron Kernoff (1900–79), Estella Frances Solomons (1882–1968), and Flora Hippisley Mitchell (1890–1973). Presenting these artists as exemplars of urban painting in the Irish context, the text will take